“The heroes weren’t the only ones who were surprised. Even the villains were shocked. No one thought we had it in us to do something like that. More importantly, no one thought we could pull it off! Sure, we had a few guys like Mage and Taste who could hang with the best, but most of the crew were low tier guys like us. No one thought we would do something that crazy.”

Victor furrowed his brows and a wave of uncomfortable memories involuntarily appeared in his mind. Victor remembered the crime that put him inside for twenty years. The fallout of it, the secrets Mage had, and his part in it. In the months leading to the demand, Mage had the crew hitting chemical plants, stealing from laboratories, and buying up store fronts in various cities. The last part was Victor’s main job. Store owners who refused to sell had Victor to deal with. Victor didn’t know the reason for it, and he didn’t care. Victor knew something big was going down, but he had assumed it was just another one of Mage crazy schemes.

Then the kids got sick.

All at once, over a hundred thousand children got sick in various cities. No one knew why. Most thought it was some new disease, but the next day the world was ‘enlightened’. Candy Mage went on air and took credit for the deed. He even laid out his plan for the world to hear.

The Candy Crew had bought over several stores in various cities and converted them to candy shops. The candies from these shops had some sort of delay spell embedded in them. Once the timer was reached, the kids fell into a coma that only Mage could lift. Mage demanded a trillion dollars to lift the spell.

It was a crazy plan that no one saw coming. Victor was part of the crew and he didn’t see it coming. That was what saved him, because the push-back came fast. The heroes and the police immediately began rounding up the crew. The Alliance of Champions set up a task force and the press gave it a name; The Candy Crisis.

Most of the Candy Crew were quickly round up. Some surrendered, though most, like Victor, put up a token resistance. It would be bad for their reputation if they went down without a fight. Lingering Taste lasted longer. It took three weeks before the heroes got her. The last to go down was Mage.

He had hidden himself in a pocket dimension, popping in and out of it to check if the world would meet his demand. It took five of the leading magic-users in the world working together to do it, but Mage was captured on one of his trips back. All told, it took the heroes over two months to round up the crew. Luckily, none of the kids died.

It was a bad memory. Victor finished the rest of his drink, and the two men sat at the bar in silence. Soft rock music washed over them as they thought of mistakes made, and the people they had hurt.

“You spent quite a lot of time thinking about this, didn’t you?” At Bar’s nod, Victor continued his question. “That doesn’t explain why I am a bigger name now.”

“Because you didn’t talk.” Bar said. “All of us cut deals for less time, even Taste, and she was second-in-command. None of us knew what Mage was trying to do, Mage admitted that much, so the heroes were willing to cut us some slack. Not you.”

A light went up in Victor’s brain as he realized what Bar was implying. Only with the experience of twenty years in prison did he managed to keep control. Even then, Victor couldn’t help but hissed.

“They think I had something to do with that crazy plan?” Bar nodded and Victor sigh. “That’s why you are here. You want to know if I knew anything about the plan.”

“You don’t. We were on the same level in the Candy Crew. If Mage told anyone about that crazy plan, it was not going to be you. No offence.”

“None taken. So why are you here.”

“A question. Why didn’t you talk? That’s what I couldn’t understand. Why didn’t you cut a deal?”

Victor just scoffed. “What could I tell them? The heroes wanted to know where Mage was. What was he after? Why did he do it? What was the aim of the Candy Crisis? How the hell was I supposed to know? I had no answers.”

“Neither did I,” Bar said. “Didn’t stop me from cutting a deal. I gave them other things. Other villains even. Why didn’t you?”

“I wasn’t going to rat on others for our mistake. If I could have gave up Mage, I would have. I didn’t because I really didn’t know where he was. I wasn’t to give up others.” Victor took a deep drink and continued. “Besides, we weren’t innocent. Mage would have never put it off without all our help. We were all guilty.”

That uncomfortable truth silenced both men. Victor was right, and both knew it. After the short silence, Bar asked another question.

“Word is Mage asked for you at his deathbed. That’s true?”

“Yeah. I was kind of surprised by that. I knew he had family, and some disciples. It was only later that I discovered none of them were willingly to be there when he passed. So, I was the only one there.”

“Why?”

“I know…knew him. We were never friends, but he was my boss for a time. Didn’t seem right to let him die alone. Besides, I was in prison. It wasn’t as if I had a lot on my plate.”

“Did he say anything in the end? He never told the heroes why he did it. Did he say why?”

“No. Bar, you weren’t there. Mage was out of it at the end. He was weak, delirious, and drifting in and out of consciousness. He kept murmuring about power, pain, and spells. It was a sad end to a powerful man.”

“Good! He deserved it.” Bar put a venomous emphasis on the word deserved. He really hated Mage for what he did. Victor could understand that. “Mage never said why he did it? Even in the end?”

“No.”

A new song began playing over the speakers. A rock song that was full of life and energy, but the two men, former colleagues in the Game, were in a world of their own. A quiet world of regrets. Finally, Bar broken the silence.

“So how do you find freedom so far?”

“A little overwhelming,” Victor freely admitted. “Still trying to get a lay of the city. Maybe do a few simple jobs to get the ring rust out. Know anyone who is hiring.”

“I’m retired. You checked on H.A.V.E yet?”

“H.A.V.E? What’s that?”

“The Heavenly Association of Villainous Entertainment.” Bar said in all seriousness. “It’s a company that caters to villains.”